North Star Port

DULUTHPORT.COM | 3 eighed down by dwindling coal shipments, overall tonnage for the Port of Duluth-Superior fell 22 percent year-over-year through June 30, 2026, narrowly topping 7 million short tons. That total lagged nearly 2 million tons behind the June 2025 pace, with 86 percent of that dip attributable to lost coal volume (see story on Page 6). The picture was mixed across the port's major bulk cargo categories. Only grain (up 67 percent) and cement (up 76 percent) produced YOY gains. Nearly 190,000 tons of wheat transited the port through June 30, with exports accounting for approximately 58 percent of that grain volume. The port's other major bulk cargoes all trailed their 2025 pace. Coal volumes dropped 88 percent, while limestone fell 6.5 percent and iron ore declined 4.8 percent. General cargo, including breakbulk, heavy-lift and project pieces, provided a bright spot, tracking nearly 10 percent ahead of the 2025 pace. Much of that cargo arrived aboard BBC Chartering vessels in June, including the first of the company's LakerMax fleet to complete a full Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System transit (see story on Page 4). Systemwide, St. Lawrence Seaway results through June 30 reflect many of the same tonnage trends displayed at the Head of the Lakes. Total cargo moving via the Seaway reached approximately 13.3 million short tons, down 5.3 percent from the same point in 2025. Grain shipments slipped to 4.2 million tons, a decline of nearly 11 percent, while iron ore dipped to 1.9 million tons and coal fell to 432,106 tons. Other dry bulk cargoes collectively held at just over 4.2 million tons, off less than 1 percent, and liquid bulk edged up to roughly 1.6 million tons, offsetting some of the softness in other segments. General cargo totaled about 830,000 tons, a decrease of roughly 9 percent, even as overall vessel transits rose 1.57 percent to 1,355. BBC SINGAPORE, ONE OF FOUR LAKERMAX VESSELS TO CALL THIS SUMMER, DOCKED AT THE CLURE TERMINAL TO DISCHARGE PROJECT CARGO IN EARLY JULY. The Federal Churchill arrives June 29, 2026, through the Duluth Ship Canal. The oceangoing vessel delivered Turkish cement to Duluth.

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